The present invention relates to a coin holder, and more particularly to a tamper-resistant, tamper-evident coin holder.
Coin holders are used by numismatists, collectors, investors and the like to protect, store, and display their coins. Typically, two-piece plastic holders snap together to hold a coin in a transparent, recessed center portion which is molded into the holder. The pieces may simply be snapped apart and the coin removed to permit direct, physical inspection.
The increasing value and desirability of coins as investments has engendered growing interest in not only preservation, but in the accurate grading of coins. Grading services have, accordingly, entered the marketplace with coin holders of various designs. These holders are designed to permanently retain coins, along with corresponding grading information for that coin, thus providing a means of assuring future owners that the coins in the holders are of the indicated grades.
Concerns have arisen with the possibilities for fraud through undetected access to such holders, which would allow the coins to be switched or the information contained in the grading certificates to be altered. Similarly, concerns exist with wholesale counterfeiting of such coin holders and grading certificates. Known coin holders used by grading services contain holograms of symbols or logos in an attempt to insure authenticity of the product. Such holders are made of hard plastic and have sealed edges for security. A functional disadvantage of such designs is that they do not allow direct viewing of the coin's surfaces, and scratches and defects in the transparent coin holder can often be misinterpreted as imperfections in the subject coin.
Because of the significant impact grading has upon the value of coins, and the possibilities for fraud, the need remains for improved, secure coin holders which, nonetheless, permit display and inspection of the coin. Further, a need exists for a secure coin holder which, nonetheless, allows direct and unobstructed viewing the surface of the coin.